Wake Me Up
by Anjelle
Summary: Dragons were never a topic at the forefront of Law's mind. Of course, that was before meeting one on his way home. Somehow giving the stranger a place to stay ended with his house being taken over. He wasn't sure how it happened but it did, and as the days go by Law finds himself growing evermore curious about his guest. And possibly attached.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, lovelies~ So some of you who follow the dragonbo-tells-all ask blog on tumblr are already a bit familiar with this AU. I actually wrote this for the opbigbang initially but, well, the plot grew and rather than cutting things out in order to finish it on time for the event, I pulled it from the big bang and just posted A Sea of Stars and Lost in the Fire instead. Here we have the start of the story, which is more an introduction to the plot and characters than anything. Also this is a collab in a way because while I'm the one writing the story, it's both mine and mah-blackberreh's AU, so she's helped with plot and the like throughout.**

 **Alright, enough blathering. Enjoy~**

* * *

He missed the bus again.

Staring down the long, poorly lit road out of the city, Law sighed. It was his own fault, he knew-he'd chanced staying behind to speak to one of his teachers and consequently found himself without a way home, forced once more to walk the aggravatingly long path to the house on the outskirts of town. The soft glow in the night sky signalled the fast approach of dusk, bright oranges and pinks fading into the dull purples and blues that would soon veil the land in a dark wash of colour, a lightless world with strange sounds and a suffocating sense of isolation.

He cursed himself as he stepped onto the beaten, dirt path alongside the road. It was no exaggeration to say that he'd known his talk with the educator wouldn't have gotten him anywhere, and it hadn't, but he'd at least wanted to try, to make the attempt. Of course, the teacher hadn't so much as budged on the issue, and Law was left both without a resolution and without a ride, bitter and annoyed-at himself, at his teacher, and possibly at night coming so damn early this time of year. But nothing annoyed him more than the long walk that was ahead of him.

By the time his shoes clacked against a familiar stone walkway, Law had been left alone with his thoughts for little over forty minutes. The sky, once awash with brilliantly vibrant yellows and pinks and reds was now covered in a dark velvet, leaving the only remaining light to be cast by the stars dotting the inky blackness overhead, and the small, last-remaining tiny beam of sun disappearing behind the horizon. He'd watched it set as the only real thing worth looking at during his walk, but his foul mood left him without so much as a single thought towards the sight. Just an ordinary sunset, just like the rest.

Law kicked a twig littering his path with a sore foot, shuffling tiredly across the stones as he approached the forest treeline and continued to complain to himself internally, lifting his head to avoid walking into a branch-and he supposed it was a good thing he looked up, as he otherwise would have missed the large, black silhouette that blocked out the sky as it sped through the canopy of trees before him. He didn't have time to question it before a loud bang resounded around him-a gunshot slicing through the noises of the forest and causing him to instinctively duck and cover his head. The crash that followed was almost in line with the shot, the violent impact of whatever it was causing the ground to shake, and he stared with wide eyes in the direction of its source. Just what the hell was that?

When all that followed was silence, then the quiet return of the forest's usual chirps and the howling of the wind, Law cautiously straightened his back and swallowed his anxiety as his mind tried to process what just happened. He was anxious, his steps slow and cautious as he listened for any further abnormalities-any signs of danger or explanation, and against his better judgement, he found himself headed towards the sound.

Trafalgar Law was, admittedly, a very curious man. His legs moved faster than his mind could caution them, and any fear he felt was pushed aside by thoughts of just what could be waiting for him at the crash. Still, he remained aware of his surroundings-cautious and ready to act if he ran into trouble. Hunters weren't allowed in the forest-it was private property, after all-so if that gunshot was from one of them it couldn't be good. And if it wasn't, well… that would be even worse, wouldn't it? And then, whatever was being shot at, well…

Maybe it was a UFO. His mind dismissed the thought as soon as it formed. That was an absurd notion. Still, it was… large, whatever it was. And it was flying…

No. No, that was an absolutely ridiculous thought and he wouldn't entertain it any longer.

As he walked, his pace picked up, faster and faster until he was taking long, hurried strides, his mind a clutter of confused thoughts as he squinted through the dark, never once entertaining the idea of removing his glasses from his bag. By that point, he'd forgotten he even had them.

* * *

The creature had turned in time to catch his pursuer aim. He saw the way the man cocked his gun and dipped low, out of the bullet's path as he heard the loud, resounding bang of it going off.

His eyes trained on the human's shrinking form, he never looked ahead.

Flying at top speed, he turned to face forward only to see a large, towering tree in his direct line of flight. He let out a surprised yelp, angling his body to veer away, but was too close and a painful crack met his ears as his side slammed into it full-force, and with it, his wing.

Immediately he plummeted downwards, the fall broken only by sharp branches and all manner of leaves, and he found himself collapsed on the ground.

Everything stung, and a hiss of pain left him as he scrambled onto all fours, his limbs unsteady through the pain. There was no time to be hurt! They would find him! So he didn't allow himself a chance to think as he spread and flapped his wings, hurried and frantic, and the moment he was off the ground he fell back down with a whimper, curling into himself as his right wing burned.

Wincing and whining, he turned to look at the appendage only to see blue feathers caked in red, his wing twitching with pain and hanging limp, and every attempt to move it ending in a muted whimper rising up from his chest.

No. Nonononono, not there, not now. He had to get away-had to run because they would find him.

His second try ended in failure and made his blood run cold, raw panic rising up from his gut.

He couldn't fly.

Shaking his head to free it of despairing thoughts, the creature scrambled to his feet once more and bit his lip. If he couldn't fly away then... he'd have to make himself smaller-to minimize the risk of being found. Inhaling a deep breath-it hurt, and he may have bruised the muscle around his ribcage when he fell-he closed his eyes and felt his body twist and contort. The process was usually painless, but right then he felt like every muscle, every tendon, was being torn and stretched and contorted.

When next he opened his eyes, the creature's face was only inches from the ground. He felt small, weak, and daresay feeble in that form. It was... different-far, far different from what he was used to. He couldn't recall the last time he'd taken it. But it was tiny, so it would be harder to locate, and that, at least, gave him hope.

The dragon's arms and legs shook, his body a rush of panic and anxiety, and he let out a strangled, scared, helpless sound as he began to scramble forward on all fours and try to create more distance before they got close. He pretended not to notice that his ears were right against his head and his tail between his legs, trying to give off a false bravado, an illusion of bravery, even though he wasn't.

...He just wanted to go home, to his nest. But... he couldn't get to his nest without his wings, could he?

Whimpering, he pressed his forehead against the ground, his claws digging into the dirt as he growled in frustration. He wasn't covering any distance like that. Walking on all fours in his half form seemed useless, and though he knew he could try to walk on his hind legs-humans did that, he recalled-he didn't have confidence he'd keep his balance.

What, then? Wait to be found-hunted?

Suddenly he heard the crunch of steps and his head snapped up, wide, scared eyes catching on a figure in the trees. He hadn't even noticed! How long had they been there?

When he smelled a distinctly human scent he let out a quiet, terrified sound, scrambling away until his back was against a tree. His whole body shook. Was it... was it one of them?

* * *

Law came to a dead halt as he reached an area of broken trees and snapped branches, the whole place left in a state of complete disarray from… whatever crashed minutes ago. His eyes scanned the scene and he'd no doubt that whatever landed there was the very same thing he'd seen flying overhead not long ago, but any direction he may have taken his observations fell out of mind as his poor vision came to rest on the small, pale form of someone seated amongst the chaos.

The man-boy? Law couldn't make out many of his features in the damnable darkness that had fallen-was stark naked and shivering against a tree. Blond, big eyes and-

He swallowed, his eyes fixed on the massive wings protruding from the stranger's back, the right one drooping heavily, and he had to ask himself if what he was seeing was no more than the product of an overactive mind. But as he allowed his sight to scroll along, catching on the horns on the blond's head and the tail at his feet, Law couldn't help the thought that this was real, and those were indication enough that whatever this man was, he wasn't human.

The student's observations came to a full stop when he notice that the… the boy was cowering, small, terrified noises escaping his mouth as he pressed as close to the tree as he could possibly get. And it was only then that Law noticed wide, blue orbs staring back at him, and that this… whatever he was, was scared of him. And that wing…

He was hurt.

Raising placating hands, the teen straightened his back and, against his apprehension, chanced a single step forward. "It… it's alright," he tried, speaking softly and slowly in an attempt not to startle the other. "I'm not… going to hurt you…"

Immediately the blond jumped, his shoulders stiffening as he hissed a low, feral warning no human could have possibly made. He scrabbled further back in what looked like an attempt to melt into the bark of the tree, an effort that proved futile and ended with another panicked whine.

"Hey, hey, shh..." Law cooed as he took another step, slowly bending down to place his bag off to the side, knowing it'd only hinder him if he needed to move. The noises it made had the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end, but he tried to swallow back the fear and keep it off his face. A nagging thought reminded him that this… this creature could be dangerous, but… it was hurt, as well, and…

He wanted… to help. But how? He didn't know the first thing about birds-he wasn't even sure this was a bird, because those horns and tail certainly didn't seem to fit-or whether this guy was more human or animal or-or-

Calm down. Focus.

The first thing he needed to do was get the boy to calm down. After that… well, after that he could try to figure out some way to help, if the blond would let him. He remembered reading something about covering a bird's eyes to relax it…

Taking a deep breath, he continued his slow approach. "You're hurt," he reminded, hoping the other would listen. "I can help you, if you'll let me."

The creature snarled, clawing at the dirt and balling his hands into fists in what Law could only observe as a desperate effort to retain composure. Obviously it didn't trust him, understandably so.

"G-get away!"

His eyes widened. The boy spoke.

The voice was raspy and unused, the words practically choked out and followed by a short coughing fit. Law tried not to allow his thoughts to linger on that, and instead focused on the knowledge that the other could speak. That… was certainly a relief.

"Go!"

Law sucked in a sharp breath and took another step. "Are you in trouble?" He thought back to the gunshot from earlier and pursed his lips. "Are you running from something?"

The creature continued trying to back away, uncaring of the very solid state of the tree, his eyes watching Law's hands as they moved about the zipper of his hoodie. With each new step the blond's movements became more frantic and scared, lacking any manner of coordination. "I-I said-" He coughed again. "Go! D-don't make me eat you, human!"

That had the youth stopping, his eyes growing wide and a peculiar fear stirring in his gut-a fear that almost had him pulling back in retreat. Almost, but he was stubborn, and even though he was infinitely tenser than just a moment ago he pressed on, sliding the material off his shoulders and holding it out in front of him. Now, how to do this without getting mauled…

On the bright side, the creature hadn't made a move to harm him yet. That was good, right?

"Let me help you." He managed to keep his voice from shaking. "You're hurt," he eyed the red leaking from various cuts and smaller injuries on his arms and legs, "bleeding… and on the run." Or so he assumed, just by the boy's panicked behaviour. "I can help… I can help fix you up." Law decided to forego the fact that he had no idea how to go about fixing an injured wing. He wanted to be a doctor, not a vet. But… he had books he could use, and it couldn't be that different from treating a human… right?

Oh god he hoped not.

The blond didn't seem to believe those words, shaking his head furiously as a growl rose up from his throat. When he saw Law still approaching, now quite close, he shoved back hurriedly, his wing slamming against the bark of the tree and causing him to cry out. His eyes squeezed shut tight and he slumped, the pain making its effects obvious.

Law took that opportunity to close the last of the distance between them and placed his hoodie on the boy's head, over his eyes, begging for this to work. If it didn't… he didn't know what to do.

The blond was stiff for a while before slowly, cautiously relaxing, and Law breathed a sigh of relief when all he did was let out a low whimper, thankfully not lashing out. As close as they were, he could now make out the claws and teeth, and it was a very real reminder of just what he was dealing with.

...Whatever that was.

"It's alright," he murmured softly-as soft as he could, which felt foreign because he most certainly wasn't a gentle person. "I'm not… going to hurt you…"

When the creature only shivered, never tried to attack, he felt his shoulders slump and a wave of triumph wash over him. But, at the same time… there was a small, barely-there voice in the back of his mind telling him to leave the boy there-that this was more trouble than it was worth. He had nothing there to treat the wounds-he didn't even have the knowledge of how to-and he certainly couldn't carry the boy home with those huge wings coming out of his back… So what, walk with him? Would he even cooperate?

Another look at the quivering form had him shaking his head and heaving a sigh. He couldn't just leave him there. As distant as he tried to be, he wasn't heartless.

He swallowed. "...Are you listening?" After a moment, there was a hesitant nod. Good. "I can help you, but I need you to walk with me. Can you do that?"

The only semblance of a response he received was the creature slumping against him tiredly, and by that point it was obvious just how out of it his 'patient' was.

This was going to be a long, long walk.

* * *

 **So there you have it, the introduction. I hope you guys enjoyed it, and I'll try to get the next chapter up in a few weeks. Thank you for reading!**

 **Adieu~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Aaaand we're back! Sorry it's been a while, I've been trying to get into a steady routine and update some of my other things (which I have half a chapter of one written already for next week and another for the week after, so I'm doing alright!) before getting back to this one. Anyway, this chapter is much longer than the last, and hopefully you guys like it. I don't really have much to say right now as I'm falling asleep... It's been a loooong week.**

 **Enjoy~**

* * *

Law wasn't sure exactly when the creature he'd stumbled upon passed out, but he knew it had to have happened sometime between when they'd reached his home and when he'd gone to look for his medical texts. In any case he was thankful that the boy did, even if he was a lot heavier than he looked and dragging him onto the bed had used twice the effort he was used to. Because there was no resistance he'd been able to set the wing, clean and dress the wounds without much hassle. Whether he'd done it correctly or not… well, that was still to be seen. He was no vet, and he doubted he could bring this guy to someone who knew what they were doing. Time would tell.

Seating himself on his desk chair to observe from a safe distance, he leaned his weight onto his knees with a heavy sigh. Now that everything was calm he had to think about just what was going to happen next. He wasn't even sure what this thing was, covered in feathers and scales, horns protruding from his skull… it was a sight, Law could say that. But what he was doing there, how he got there or what would happen to him now, well. That he couldn't say. All he knew was that this boy was running from something and if Law hadn't shown up, he would probably still be running.

Or worse.

He pressed his lips together as a soft, pained groan met his ears, the blond flopped down on his belly atop the comforter stretching out, his claws digging into the mattress - Law tried not to take it to heart - and a yawn escaping him. Before his dared to open his eyes to the bright overhead light of the bedroom, the boy gave an experimental sniff of his surroundings, his nose scrunching up in distaste. Looking out into the room his anxiety was instantly showed in the way his feathers puffed out, tail twitching as he pushed himself up and looked around.

And then his eyes caught on Law, a low growl rising up from the back of his throat as a chill ran up the human's spine. He was quick to raise placating hands, allowing deep blue orbs to assess him, the boy creeping closer ever so slowly, eyes narrowed. "Human…"

Law swallowed. "How do you feel?"

Feathered ears twitched, the blond blinking confusedly before looking back at his bandaged wing. "...Hurts. Painful."

"Well that's to be expected…" Heaving a sigh he allowed his shoulders to slump, once more resting his elbows on his knees as he considered the patient seated across from him. "It will take time, but I believe it will heal. You should be able to fly again, if you're careful."

Frowning, the creature gave an understanding nod, slipping off the bed and stumbling on his feet as though he'd never walked before as he sniffed the surrounding area - every piece of furniture, every article of clothing in his closet had to be monitored. But Law allowed it. If the expense for keeping that thing calm was an invasion of his privacy then he would allow it. He wasn't much of a fighter… and that boy had sharp teeth.

Eventually it seemed the blond couldn't keep himself standing and he lowered into the middle of the floor, eyes trained consideringly on the entranceway. It wasn't hard to see what he was thinking and the human frowned at him. "What are you, exactly?"

The boy went stiff, his eyes snapping to Law's and he hissed.

"I won't do anything," he assured, tilting his head to the side as he thought. It may have been ridiculous, however… "A dragon?"

Within seconds the blond was baring his teeth, claws digging into the hardwood flooring as he crept towards the back of the room to put some distance between them. Apparently that was a firm, resounding 'yes', and while Law was unsure just how much he believed that, he resigned himself to it all the same.

"Look," he started, voice soft yet firm, "I think it would be best if you lodged here for the time."

"What?"

"Just lis-"

"No!" the dragon hissed, swiping at him when he went to stand. "You will not keep me here!"

"I'm not going to-"

A growl was there to meet him, and his eye twitched. "Listen, you overgrown-"

"I will not become some human's lab rat!" the dragon exclaimed, and if looks could kill Law would have died a thousand deaths - and really, that boy still didn't trust him after he went out of his way to treat that damnable wing of his?

He dropped onto the floor beside the blond, hefting an irritated breath as he matched the glare he was being given. Law did not like to be interrupted. "Bloody lizard... I'm trying to help you!" Law supposed he should have been happy to see that the dragon regained so much energy so soon after waking, but in all honesty he just found his behaviour insufferable. As much as he understood in theory that he should have expected this level of resistance, experiencing it first hand was a different matter entierly, and Law was far from a patient man.

The blond snorted, crossing his arms over his chest with a look on his face that clearly displayed what he thought of Law's 'helping', his eyes scrolling open to the medical texts laden atop the bedsheets, taking no more than a few seconds to put together what had happened. "You were reading a book! You don't know the first thing about helping me!" Admittedly there was some truth to that. "And don't call me that!"

Law huffed indignantly, the scowl on his face firmly set. "It's called 'a learning experience' and it worked out just fine, did it not?" Really, he never thought meeting a mythical creature would put him in such a foul mood. He hadn't once heard a word of thanks come out of that mouth of his. "What do you suppose I call you, damnable lizard?"

There was a moment of silence, blue orbs flickering about in thought before lifting once more to meet the student's own. "I don't know, but not that, bratty human!"

"What, so you don't have a name?"

"I do, I'm just not giving it. Bratty human."

How aggravating. Of all possible manner of fabled creatures, why was he stuck with this one? "Alright then, stupid lizard."

"Infuriating pest."

The human watched as his guest looked past him briefly before rising to his feet. He noted pleasantly that the boy was far more stable than before, his stride confident as he moved over to the window and-

"Don't even think about it." Law followed after him quickly, shutting the window and putting himself between it and the dragon before turning around to face him with a displeased expression. His first thought was that this had better not be a repeat occurrence. If he kept trying to leave like that, Law just might let him. "You can't leave right now," he stated firmly, the tone of his voice unwavering in a show of his resolve.

The blond frowned. "Where I go is not something for you to decide," he hissed, his tail lashing out and hitting Law in the face as he stepped pasted.

The youth sputtered, letting out a frustrated groan as he rounded and wrapped his arms around the dragon's to hold him in place. "You're my patient and you are injured," he stated firmly, and the other stilled, leading him to sigh. That meant he at least had the pest's attention, right? "You were being chased, and you won't be getting very far with your wing as it is. You certainly can't fly, at least. So you would be stuck out in the open when you inevitably collapse. And where would that leave you?"

The room fell quiet, and for a while he couldn't decide whether the bastard was considering it or flat-out ignoring him. Eventually, however, blue irises caught his sight, matched with a pout. "Away from the irritating human."

He let out an explosive sigh. "And in the hands of your enemies, yes?" Come to think of it, he still hadn't asked about them - those pursuers with the guns. Absently he made a mental note to bring it up once things had settled. "So where would you rather be?"

The pout deepened as the blond turned to fully face him, and it seemed that Law finally got through that thick skull of his. "I'm weighing my options." Or not. Fantastic. And even though his escape attempt had ceased, he still whacked the student with his tail. Twice.

It was going to be a long night.

Law flinched away from a third strike, scowling and leaning back against the wall. "I'm merely trying to help you."

"And in return I've had the decency not to eat you."

Eat me? Law shivered, a look of disgust crossing his face. Was that really an option? Did dragons really… No, no, he didn't care. He wasn't going to look into it - at least, not right at that moment. Instead… "Why would you want to eat me? You never know - I could be full of nasty diseases that aren't good for your kind."

What? It was a legitimate question.

The blond closed the distance between them, leading a breath to hitch in the human's throat as unending pools of blue stared back at him. "Because it would be satisfying." Suddenly he licked Law's neck. The youth pushed him away and hurriedly wiped the disgusting trail of saliva from his skin, a noise of surprise escaping him. The lizard didn't seem bothered by it in the slightest. "Tastes fine. Could use pepper."

Law gaped at the blond, his hand still firmly pressed to his neck as he tried to regain his composure. Damnable little pest. "You - what do you think you're doing?!"

"Tasting you," came the blunt answer as his patient stepped around him, looking him over with an unreadable expression that peaked his anxiety. "Dragon, yeah?" He said it as though it were the most obvious thing in the world - as though Law should have known what he was doing from the start. Given their current choice of topic, he could see why… and that only frustrated him further.

Lips pressed into a thin line, Law slumped and released a breath as he rubbed smooth circles into his temple. Were it not for the adrenaline and heart attack inducing levels of caffeine coursing through his system, he knew for certain he'd be feeling an incredible wave of exhaustion. "Stop that, now. You're not going to eat me."

The certainty in Law's voice didn't deter the dragon in the slightest and he pushed forward until the human could feel hot breath on his neck, his steps fast and confident and voice flat as he spoke, "Are you really in a position to tell me what I can and cannot do, little human?"

He went very still at that, and the only things in his vision were the sharp rows of teeth peeking out from behind the boy's lips - and he never even felt it when a pair of strong hands gripped his shoulders to keep him in place.

"I'm not going to lie; this will be excruciatingly painful."

...He wouldn't. "Let me go," he commanded, his tone flat and even, portraying none of the knot of fear still formed in his stomach.

The dragon tightened his grip, the sharp tips of his claws digging into the human's skin, and as soon as he saw those lips part and teeth near, Law's leg shot up to knee the shorter man in the groin. Hard. A pained yelp escaped the stupid lizard's mouth and instantly he released Law's shoulders and dropped, leaving the student to stand over him in triumph.

That… was somewhat terrifying. Even if he refused to admit it aloud.

Releasing a shivering breath, and with it his anxieties, Law turned to lock the window for added measure, completely certain the dragon was acting like that in preparation of another escape attempt. "You're staying here. At least… at least for the night. I can't let you leave in good conscience knowing that you're injured and there are people after you. Damn ungrateful scaled turkey."

After a few moments of muted cursing the blond recovered, glowering at him with a snarl, and before he could get a word in Law knelt down to hit him upside the head.

"Would you kindly quit being all 'rawr I'm a dragon' and listen? Sit your ass down, you moronic peacock." He hefted a sigh. "If you go out there right now, you will not last."

That time it seemed his words got through to the thick-skulled idiot as feathered ears pressed down against blond hair and blue irises met the floor. A long, whip-like tail flicked forward and the dragon hugged it to his chest, never once daring to look up as he murmured in that scratchy voice of his, "I… don't like being caged."

Law lifted his head to stare at the blond with mild surprise and just a hint of sympathy. "It's… not a cage. Don't think of it as one." The youth ran a stressed hand through his hair, the other tapping a rhythm into the wood of the floor. Why was he feeling like the guilty one? Damnable lizard. "My father's away on business, so you can have free reign of the house. There's plenty of space, and… Think of it as a hospital. Just - someplace safe for you to rest."

Unfortunately those words didn't seem to have the intended effect, the boy's sight remaining fixed to the floor as he fiddled with the blue feathers of his tail. "...It's not the nest, and I'm not permitted to leave. No matter how big or small, it is a cage."

He was forced to look away, guilt multiplying by the second. "...I'm sorry."

Awkward silence was all that filled the room as Law looked at the scattered medical texts littered about the floor and bed, amidst bloodied gauze and first-aid supplies he had yet to clean up, over to desk where his unopened laptop rested. The tapping picked up pace in match to the tension thickening the air, and he scrabbled for something to say - to lessen the heavy atmosphere looming about.

There was no way he was going to school tomorrow after all of this.

"...Nest?" he tried, pressing for his patient to elaborate in the hope of a temporary truce.

"Nest. Home."

"Ah…" So he… lived in a nest, then? An actual nest? Perhaps he should have expected that, but he hadn't. Even if this boy claimed to be a… dragon, he looked remarkably similar to any human, a few key features aside, and picturing him in a - a nest was… "Why aren't you there - at your nest?"

The blond's fingers stopped fiddling with his feathers and a small whimper broke the returning quiet. "...Because a high and mighty human found and caged me, and I'm too kind to eat him without first boiling the water necessary to sanitize him."

He rolled his eyes. Of course he wouldn't get a straight answer. Because that would be too easy. "Don't tell me, then."

With a short grunt, Law hefted himself off the floor and chanced moving away from the window to the backpack leaning against his desk, sifting through its contents until he found his science textbook and seating himself with a highlighter and pen. With his little guest more or less settled down, he figured he might as well try to be productive until the lizard tried his patience in some new, creative way - because it was bound to happen at some point. Even if he didn't intend on attending classes in the morning, he could at least assure he wouldn't fall behind by ignoring the day's readings.

Sighing, the teen flipped through the pages until coming upon chapter eight, readying his highlighter and quickly beginning a scan of the first page. As he did so he opened a notebook and, upon finding the first key point, started jotting every notable bit of information down.

The peace didn't last more than half an hour before he heard an explosive sigh. Apparently done grooming his tail, the dragon picked himself up off the floor and soon Law's posture went rigid, finding a chin resting casually atop his shoulder.

He wasn't used to so much contact. Fuck.

"Wha's that?"

The highlighter slipped from his fingers and hit the page with a dull tap, and he released a breath. "...Homework. I thought I might as well complete the work I'd been assigned, since I'm not going to school tomorrow."

The dragon hummed and Law shuddered, feeling the vibrations of the boy's throat through the fabric of his shirt. "Right… Humans do that 'school' thing, don't they?" From the corner of his eye, the student could make out a blue tail ticking back and forth. "What's it like?"

"An annoyance," he answered bluntly as he regained composure and picked the highlighter back up to resume his work, completely ignoring the unsteady tremble of his hand.

"Why is that?"

Deep breath. His shoulders slumped as he worked, relaxing slowly with each passing second. "Unfortunately, many of the teachers at my school don't know how to do their jobs. I learn more on my own than I ever do in class."

He felt the other's head shift to look at him, still resting heavily on his shoulder. "Yes, because reading a book while setting a wing is so much better than whatever they have you doing."

"It is, actually," Law replied matter-of-factly, snorting at the sarcasm oozing from the one behind him. "They wouldn't have taught me that in the classes I'm taking, anyway."

"But it is useful…"

The dragon's voice faded and he started sniffing Law curiously, causing him to tense all over again. Despite that, he did his best to keep his focus on the text in front of him. "Whatever you say, stupid peacock."

"I am not a peacock. That is insulting." The frown was practically visible through the tone of his voice.

It took everything he had not to elbow the blond in the ribs. He wasn't used to such close personal contact - certainly not with a complete stranger. The only thing holding him back was the knowledge that his patient's torso was bruised to hell, and anything like that would have hurt severely. He didn't need to go upsetting the pest after just barely getting him to calm down. "Must you?" he sighed. "I'm trying to focus and your breath stinks something foul. It's distracting."

"Whatever you say, rude little human." He heard more than saw the other's pout before he felt that disgusting wetness return as the dragon licked his cheek and straightened. The blond plopped down in the corner he'd sat in before as Law scrubbed at the left side of his face and went back to work. "And stop calling me a peacock."

Law sighed, spinning his chair around to face his patient, the end of the highlighter tapping against the arm of the chair. "If you told me your name then I would have no reason to call you that, would I?"

The dragon shuffled a bit, clearly uncertain. "...Well it is not 'stupid peacock'."

He rolled his eyes. "That doesn't tell me much of anything, lizard."

"It's not that, either," the boy growled out.

"That still is not helping, turkey."

The blond went to his open his mouth to snap out another retort but paused, quiet a moment. "Well, I'm currently flightless, I'll give you that…" He shook his head to keep the thought from going any further. "But no."

Their gazes locked in silence, neither blinking, before Law let out a small groan and spun back around to face his homework, conceding for the moment. If the little annoyance didn't want to say, he wouldn't press.

That time, his work went undisturbed.

* * *

Sabo's tail thumped against the ground as he stared out the window from his place on the floor, watching dark clouds block out the light of the moon. At some point he'd accepted the human's help, albeit begrudgingly, and for the past while he'd been lying on the floor quietly, resting as the boy did that 'homework' thing or whatever it was. This, however, left him horribly bored and slightly agitating. Hunger was slow to curl in his stomach, and by the time he noticed it was there he was sure a long time had past, the moon now higher in the sky than before.

Curiously his eyes skirted over to his host, taking him in. It wasn't often he got close to humans - lest it was to eat them, of course - so he had to admit to himself that seeing this one so openly was… fascinating. This one looked young, rather jumpy as well, and he couldn't decide whether that was annoying or charming. Either way, it was… interesting.

But the rest of the place wasn't.

Human nests were so boring. There was nothing for him to do, especially with the human occupying himself with his books, and he had more than one internal debate about trying to leave again. He was feeling better, so he probably could have succeeded that time… but he had to admit, now that he was thinking rationally, that the human boy was correct in saying that leaving was dangerous, and… he doubted he'd be able to make it back to the nest without flying - doubted even more that he'd go undetected by the cursed human parasites looking for him if he tried. So for now he would play along with the human's little game…

Now if only he could find a way to entertain himself.

Flopping onto his stomach, Sabo huffed and looked about the room. It was mostly bare aside from a bed, dresser and the desk that the human was working at. There was a bookshelf but it was small, and it wasn't like he really knew how to read…

It'd been years since he last entered a human nest. Or properly spoken to one, for that matter.

With a pout, the dragon turned his attention instead to the bed in the corner opposite the one he'd taken over, eyeing it. Even from there he could tell that it reeked of the human, but compared to the rest of the house, that was a significant improvement. A foul stench seeped in from behind the hall door, a scent other than human billowing about, and it made his nostrils burn. He hadn't the faintest idea how he would sleep with such an overwhelming odour surrounding him. But the human's, while strong, wasn't nearly as unpleasant. Maybe if…

After a moment of thought he hopped up, crawling across the floor to the bed and reaching out to grab-

"Hey, stupid lizard," the voice had him jumping and reeling back, eyes darting to the human's face, "are you hungry?"

Sabo blinked, gaze scrolling down to an open bag of strange, crispy… things that smelled almost entirely of salt, held out to him as an offering. That was… human food, perhaps? He was about to refuse when a protesting gurgle left his stomach, his hunger forcing itself to attention. But the smell of so much salt… How could the human eat that stuff?

He hadn't eaten since he woke that night, though…

"...Meat?" he questioned lightly, squirming a bit as he stared down at the floor.

The dragon could feel golden orbs boring into him as the silence stretched, and he wondered a moment if the human would refuse his request, but eventually there was a sigh and the bag was discarded as the man stood. "You should have said something if you were hungry. C'mon."

Sabo watched the brunet exit the room, a bit surprised by how easy that was - and how willingly the human shared his food. He, himself, tended to be on the more selfish side when it came to what he hunted and scavenged for. It was… perplexing, to say the least.

And then there was that scent - the one that put him on edge - emanating from outside the safety of the human's cosy little nest. He hugged his tail tightly to his chest, unsure of whether or not he was willing to go out in exchange for food.

Only a moment later the human popped his head back in, glaring dully his way. "Do you want meat or not? Come on."

With a conflicted whine, Sabo rose to his feet and followed, almost gagging when he stepped out into the hall and the stench assaulted him. He hoped it wouldn't take long to get used it and continued on quietly behind his host, down the stairs and through the first floor to the kitchen. He hadn't noticed on their way up earlier just how large the place was - certainly bigger than most human nests, at least. He was fortunate that certain pockets of it held more of that boy's scent than whatever else was in there, so with time it became almost tolerable, but it still left him tense.

The human opened the cold-box… thing - a fridge, he believed it was called - and bent to peer into it with a hum of thought. Sabo lingered by the doorway, unsure of what he was supposed to do. There was a table and set of four chairs in the centre of the room, but… he barely recalled the last time he sat on one of those; it was rare for him to ever take that form, as it was horribly awkward for him.

"The only non-frozen meat we have is in the leftover spaghetti… unless you'd like some bacon," the human piped up, jolting Sabo from his thoughts. "Which would you prefer?"

His only response was to shrug, staring at the floor as he played with the feathers of his tail, trying to ignore the tension from the scent that made him feel more and more like he should not be there.

"Come on, peacock, work with me here." When he wasn't given a reply the human let out a frustrated breath, running a hand through his hair as he muttered a soft string of curses. "Fine, bacon it is." Grabbing out the meat, he slammed the refrigerator door shut and shuffled over to the cupboards to get the utensils he needed.

Sabo's stare raised to watch his host move about a moment, before looking around awkwardly. He found himself a place in one of the empty corners and sat cross-legged on the floor, his hands distractedly fiddling with the silver ring resting around the plumage of his tail.

"Don't sit on the floor," the human commanded, peering back at him and pointing absently to the table in the centre. "Take a seat there."

Sabo shook his head, remaining where he was.

With a huff, the man turned away from the stove to stare at the blond, his fingers tapping against the countertop behind him. "Alright, what's wrong?"

The dragon's ears pressed against his head, and he decided that he didn't want to admit that the scents made him uneasy. He didn't want to mention how much it bothered him that he could smell the other creature in there, although the scent was old, whatever it was long since gone. So he… wouldn't say. "I'm used to this," he explained as he pulled at loose feathers. "I'm… not in this form a lot. Took it because it's small - easier to hide. Don't need a chair."

The boy stared at him with a deep-set frown, clearly unsatisfied with that answer. "A chair would surely be more comfortable… What do you mean, 'not in this form a lot'?"

Sabo hugged his legs to his chest, his tail wrapping securely around them as he let out a small breath. "This… isn't me. Not really. It's a false form."

"So you have other forms…" The human leaned back against the counter, arms folded across his chest. "Then… you have a bestial form? The larger one that - that crashed when you landed?"

Somehow that word didn't sit well with him - 'bestial'. Throughout his life he'd never heard it used in very good context. With a muffled groan, he pressed his forehead to his knees and nodded. "My real form."

There was a bit of a pause in the conversation before the tapping returned, meeting Sabo's ears in that same steady rhythm and causing them to twitch. Somehow that habit of the human's was… strangely comforting. "I assume it's quite large… This house is big, but I'm not sure you'd fit. Maybe if I move the furniture around in the living room…"

Sabo blinked, lifting his head to stare at the human. Was that… was he attempting to be considerate? Subconsciously his tail wagged from side to side, pleased by the sentiment on its own.

"It's fine. I can… stay like this. Without a chair."

The human stared back, clearly not satisfied with that answer, but sighed and turned back around. "Whatever you say, peacock."

When the meal was cooked, the boy served it at the table alongside a glass of water and a few utensils, Sabo watching curiously, before moving over to the seated dragon and offering his hand.

He eyed it with unhidden hesitance. "...Chairs are uncomfortable."

The hand remained there. "Deal with it for now. It's polite."

After staring at the appendage for no short length of time Sabo cautiously accepted it, feeling its warmth. Their hands touched and he was pulled to his feet and guided over to the table, his mouth watering as the tantalizing aroma of grease and freshly cooked meat wafted his nose, and he lowered himself onto the seat.

He was right; chairs were uncomfortable.

The human sat across from him, sipping from a mug of - of something, and Sabo began picking at the bacon with his claws, looking it over carefully. He completely disregarded the fork and knife - he'd never used them before and wasn't about to start - and sniffed the food carefully before grabbing a piece and tearing at it with his teeth, immediately assaulted by the heavenly flavour of pork.

Sabo's moment of bliss was interrupted by a pattern of tapping quickly becoming familiar, and he paused to stare at the human, gold irises staring right back. Oh how he hated being observed.

His host seemed to notice this quickly, finishing off the last of whatever was in his mug and rising once more to refill it, leaving the dragon to his meal.

At the end of his meal Sabo licked his fingers clean and stood, going right back to sit in the corner. Admittedly, it'd tasted… pretty good, actually. His appetite had been sated, and he felt rather… content.

Refilling his mug, the human held it to his lips and glanced at the time on the stove. "Two in the morning, huh…" He looked at Sabo in thought before raising his mug. "Want some?"

The dragon shook his head. He didn't… really know what it was, and he'd tried enough things that night. That was the first time he'd ever had 'bacon', so his natural curiosity had dimmed for the moment - at least where food was concerned.

The human pressed his lips together in a thin line. "Is there anything I can do to make you feel more comfortable?"

Sabo blinked at him, giving the question a moment of thought. He… kind of wanted to make a nest. If he was going to spend the night there, in that human's home, he wanted to at least have a nice, cosy place to rest. But humans didn't really make nests, so he doubted this one would understand such a desire…

After a minute he shook his head, ridding himself of the thought.

"Really?"

"Really."

"I don't believe you," the other stated bluntly, his hand wrapped around the handle of his mug as he took yet another sip.

Sabo shrugged, "'S your problem."

"Well, yeah, it is," he admitted with a frown, "because I want to help you, but you're not letting me."

"Tough."

Apparently that only frustrated the human further, as he slammed his mug against the countertop. "Damn it, let me help you!" The steaming liquid inside sloshed over the edge and onto his hand, and he let out a string of curses as it burned his skin into a painful red. Immediately he released the mug and hurried over to the sink, running his hand under the tap as the curses continued on under his breath.

The scent of the burn entered Sabo's nostrils and he immediately headed over, eyes wide with concern as he hovered around the muttering man, fidgeting as an incessant urge to assist filled him. But he was apprehensive - knew very well how humans reacted to his brand of healing. He fought with the feeling for a moment, tail twitching anxiously, before finally giving in and asking quietly, "You need… help?"

His host turned to him, face creased with pain as he looked the dragon over with obvious suspicion, likely wondering how he intended to 'help'. But in the end he shook his head free of hesitance. "That… would be appreciated."

Sabo readily grabbed the hand by the wrist and held it to his lips, laving the wound with his tongue, the saliva setting about reducing the redness and swelling of the burn, and with it, the pain. He felt the human's hand jerk and saw the clear look of disgust on his face, but that look slowly morphed into shock, and the blond released the hand nervously. He saw the way the other was staring at him with wide eyes and shrank back, his ears pressing flat against his head.

The human closed the short distance between them easily enough, grabbing Sabo's face and squishing his cheeks together as he tried to peer into the dragon's mouth, a look of sheer fascination and excitement lighting up the pools of gold and yellow staring back at him. "That is remarkable... It's your saliva, correct? It has healing properties?"

Sabo hissed and jerked away, recreating the distance between them. He hated being looked at like that, and suddenly he regretted showing the boy. "...Maybe."

His host was undeterred, however, simply stepping in again and pressing his fingers to Sabo's lips, trying to get him to open his mouth. "Amazing… I'd love to see what it can do. Does it work on any kind of injury?"

The blond nipped at his fingers in warning and pulled back, slightly annoyed by his persistence, "Maybe."

The boy pouted and lowered his arm, obviously disappointed but understanding that Sabo didn't want to be prodded, before his eyes went wide and he turned away abruptly, starting on the dishes in the sink. "...Thank you."

He looked away. "It's nothing…" But then his eyes caught on something resting on the counter and he approached, a curious glint in his eyes.

"No, really," the human continued, his back to his guest as he washed a plate, oblivious to what the dragon was doing. "I hate not being able to use my hands."

That comment had Sabo staring at his own hands, flexing them experimentally. "I'm not used to having them…" With a shake of his head he grabbed the object on the counter and grinned. Pepper.

"Really?" The other turned to him then, blinking. "Ah, right, dragon… In your other form I suppose you have something more like paws?"

"No thumbs," he supplied with a nod, tapping the pepper shaker and holding it up to his nose to sniff, sneezing.

That had the human staring at him more fully. "...What are you doing?"

Sabo jumped a bit, holding the pepper protectively to his chest as he faced the brunet. "...Said you'd taste better with it."

"...Don't even think about it."

The dragon's ears went back against his head again and he stared at the other with large, sad blue eyes. They remained locked in each other's gazes until the other turned back around to face the sink without further comment. When it wasn't taken away Sabo perked up, his tail wagging in triumph.

* * *

Law heaved a heavy breath, droplets of water falling from his form and dripping into the drain at his feet as he turned the shower off, remaining there for a while. After the dragon's hunger was sated he'd slipped away to bathe. It was true that he needed it, but at the same time a part of him just needed a break - to get away from the absolute absurdity waiting for him in the other room. He'd taken it well, the presence of a mythical creature under his roof, but at the same time he was in need of a bit of an escape from it all to sort out his thoughts. Those twenty minutes of solitude gave him that.

He'd never been much of a lover of fantasy, but at the same time there was something almost… enchanting about finding out something like a dragon really existed, and the sheer novelty of it waiting for him in the other room had a ball of excitement swell within his gut. He wanted to learn more about the blond - to study him and to find out just why and how he'd gone undetected for so long. The 'why', well… he could see the potential dangers in mingling with humans. The men after him likely wanted him because of what he was; it wouldn't have been a surprise. The 'how' was the far more bizarre of the two, and the one he was most eager to investigate. Someone should have found him. If he was flying that close to town, he should have been discovered long ago. But the dragon had displayed some odd abilities - the healing saliva, for one.

Shaking his head, Law stepped out of the shower and began drying himself off, grabbing a towel from the rack. It was strange; so rarely did things excite him the way this had, and so few things caught his interest that he sometimes forgot how it felt to be enamoured with a new discovery. He hadn't been this eager to learn in a long, long time, and the thought of actually getting to study something so otherworldly-

A faint scratching came from the door. Law paused in drying his hair, glancing back at it with narrowed eyes as the sound grew louder, impatience conveyed through the quickening rhythm.

"Little human…"

He pressed his lips together and resumed, trying to ignore it - and hoping he wouldn't see claw marks when he opened the door. He'd scratched up the couch in the living room earlier. If that damnable flying turkey ruined one more thing….

"Little human," the dragon repeated, "my wings…"

Interest piqued, Law contented to wrap the towel around his waist and open the door just a crack, peering out at the blond with a frown. "What is it?" he asked, looking the other over. It took him only a moment to notice the dried blood clotting the blue and yellow feathers from both the gash where his bone was cracked and the various other injuries littering his body. Now that he really looked, the student could see red blotting the blond hair curling at the sides of his face, as well. With a heavy breath, he stepped aside and gestured the dragon in. "Very well, then. I'm just finishing up."

The blond smiled, accepting his offer happily before plopping down in the tub without a moment's hesitation. He'd really… calmed down since earlier - relaxed more.

"Then - go right ahead," he stated, gesturing to the soaps and shampoos he could use.

The dragon just stared. When Law didn't seem to get it, his wings twitched, "You do it."

"Excuse me?"

"Can't reach." As though to put more backing behind his words, the blond tried to grab his wing, arms unable to bend well enough to do so. They were far too large, and them protruding from his back certainly didn't make it any easier.

You've got to be kidding me. With a small groan, Law ran a hand through his hair before adjusting the towel around his waist and kicking a stool over the side of the tub. "Fine, then, bird." He grabbed the shower head and turned on the taps before taking a seat, waiting for the water to heat. Fortunately he hadn't been neglectful, and cleaned the damaged wing before binding it earlier. The rest, however, he'd left alone in fear of further upsetting the dragon; he didn't know how much he would have handled before waking up.

Now, though, only hours later…

The water heated, a light steam lifting from the spray, and he went to raise it but paused, frowning. He should… probably protect the wing. No, of course he should protect it. How careless of him.

With a sigh he dropped the shower head into the tub, rising to his feet and heading to the door. "Wait here a moment." Not waiting for an understanding retort, the youth left through the connecting bedroom, down the hall to the first floor where he began rummaging through the cupboards in the kitchen. It took him a while to find something big enough to cover such a large appendage, as only covering the binding likely wouldn't have been enough to assure the water would not hit it, but eventually he located the garbage bags and started back up the stairs - and froze.

On the floor of the bedroom were a bunch of haphazardly-piled pillows, cushions and blankets in a corner of the room - the corner the blond had been lying in while he did his homework. His bed was now bare aside from the cover, his things stolen by the thieving lizard along with throw pillows from the living room on the first floor, blankets from the linen closet and even one of the couch cushions. That little…

Taking a deep breath, he shook off any irritation he had bubbling beneath his skin. That… was alright. No harm done. Nothing was destroyed, simply moved, and he could put it all back once the dragon left.

With that, he returned to the bathroom to wrap and secure the bag around the wing.

The blond looked over to see what he was doing, making a face. "...There is a bag on my wing."

"I'm well aware." Without another word he once more grabbed hold of the shower head and started spraying the dragon down, the water easily sliding down the feathers' slick surface, and he realized he'd have to be a little more careful if he wanted to be sure he cleaned them properly. While he knew nothing about birds, really, he knew that feathers could be delicate and supposed getting them sopping wet really wasn't necessary.

Grabbing and wetting a cloth, Law handed the shower head off to the dragon who set about cleaning the rest of his body, and began dabbing at the blood on the feathers, watching as it slowly lifted from them. "Do you use anything else when cleaning them?"

"Mm. Just water."

Alright, then…

Law began a steady pattern of dabbing the stains and rinsing the cloth, starting at the top and working his way down through the layers of feathers until the entirety of the wing was clean. When he finished, it seemed the dragon was taking his sweet time cleaning himself, and after heaving a sigh he helped the other get the blood out of his hair, as well. He seemed to enjoy the free scalp massage, as Law came to make another discovery: dragons purred. It didn't sound all too unlike a cat, only very obviously deeper and louder, starting out quiet and going stronger as the creature began to relax into the motions.

Law swallowed, continuing with what he was doing. "...Could you tell me your name now?"

He felt the man tense beneath his fingertips, posture rigid, before he let out a breath. "...Sabo."

"Sabo, then…" It was an odd name, but he couldn't really say anything, considering what his was. "My name is Law."

"Law?" the dragon echoed, turning his head to glance back at him, the purr still running strong. "Why 'Law'?"

He paused at that, staring at Sabo with a dull look on his face. "I do not know. It was the name given to me. Why 'Sabo'?"

The dragon made a face not unlike a pout, turning back to once more face forward, staring the tiled wall. "...Fair point. But 'Law' is… law. Absolute. You're too squirmy for a name like that."

He assumed Sabo was referring to their earlier encounter when he, admittedly, hadn't an idea of how to confront the strange, potentially dangerous dragon threatening to eat him. Begrudgingly he gave him that.

After rinsing Sabo's hair, Law went about grabbing some extra towels from the closet in the hall and patted his wings down as the dragon set about drying the rest of himself - and he realized, offhandedly, that they wouldn't be able to get any shirts that would fit over his wings. He'd have to go without - not that he seemed to have a problem with walking around nude.

Exiting the bathroom, Sabo was instantly drawn to the piles of pillows in the corner and knelt in the centre of them all, beginning to fuss with their arrangement. He would place one, move another, then go back to the first one because, when asked, he said it 'did not feel right'. Over and over again he would do this, once in a while disappearing from the room only to arrive with more bedding. Law didn't interrupt, didn't even bring it up. He just allowed the creature to do as he wished, satisfied with the simple fact that he wasn't tearing them apart.

Law set about dressing himself before searching his closet and dresser for a pair of pants for the blond to wear, wondering if he had anything that wouldn't be a tripping hazard; with the way Sabo seemed to move about at random, he found that important. At the back of his closet there happened to be a very old pair from before his last growth spurt hit, and he had to wonder if they would be small enough-

His thoughts were halted when he felt something plush being rubbed against him, and he blinked down to see Sabo pressing the surface of a pillow to his side with a look of sheer determination. "...What, exactly, do you think you are doing?"

Sabo didn't pause in his task, flipping the object around to begin his efforts anew with the other side. He looked… oddly focused on the menial task, being thorough in whatever it was he was doing. "Making it smell like you," he answered simply, as though that explained away all of Law's confusion.

"...And why is that?"

The dragon looked up then, his mouth pulled into a thin line and brows creased in concentration. "Because if it smells like you, it doesn't smell like the other thing."

He blinked, turning to fully face the shorter blond with a look of confusion. "What 'other thing'?"

"That lives here," Sabo added, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "That thing. It smells horrid."

Other… His father? That was the only person who lived there, and he'd been gone away on business for… quite some time now. Yet Sabo could still smell him strong enough to be bothered by it - and he didn't like his father's scent?

Law shook his head, deciding not to question it, and held the pants up for the dragon. "That aside… Try these on-"

He couldn't even finish the sentence before finding himself being tugged downward, landing on the mass of pillows and blankets that Sabo had turned into a 'nest'. The fall was painless because of that, but he was left dumbfounded as the dragon shut off the bedroom light and curled up beside him. "Why-"

"Shhhhh," Sabo hushed, his long, feathered tail finding its way around Law's waist, "sleep now. Quiet."

Sleep - he didn't expect Law to lie there with him, did he? But sure enough soon after the breaths of the creature nestled beside him evened and shallowed, his eyes closed and the full weight of his head pressing against the human's ribcage. Sabo's head was heavy, the horns atop it adding a significant amount of weight, and he had to be careful not to get poked by them, but after a tense few minutes Law was able to relax, his body sinking into the plush surface of the nest. It… was almost relaxing.

He found himself drifting off soon after.

* * *

 **And so you have the first night. Admittedly this is very different from how I normally write these two characters, but it's also a lot of fun to experiment, so I'm enjoying it!**

 **To my lovelies~**

 **LawFan: Yep, another! Crack ships are my favourite. I don't really think I would call Law that here... you'll see.**

 **Guest: Here's more~**

 **silverchiarixx: Glad you like!**

 **natlaredo: Hehe very happy to hear you're excited! You're so sweet, thank you so much hun! It means a lot.**

 **sarge1130: Here's the update!**

 **MaskedPyro: Law's going to need a lot of luck and a HELL of a lot of patience.**

 **alegra77: Thank you dear, hope the story lives up to your expectations!**

 **mara-taraka: Ahh you're from the ask blog? Awesome! I'll be sure to keep working on it!**

 **AnyMoreBrightIdeasGenius: You're very welcome my dear~**

 **Mary D. Sue: Adjkfsgh you're so sweet, thank you!**

 **Krystal 'Demon' Sanate: It's nice to see some more SaboLaw fans!**

 **Aki no Kitsune: You're so sweet, thank you . You SURE you want to bet that $20? In any case, you'll see a bit of Ace next chapter so we'll see how well your theory holds up XD**

 **NavysBlueSquishy: Awww I hope you continue to enjoy it hun!**

 **Son of Whitebeard: Hehe yes~**

 **somethingsmellsfishy: Law had to walk... quite a bit. He lives a bit aways from town, so on foot it's pretty far travel. Yeah, we made the blog as a way to sort of test the waters while I wrote it XD Really happy to hear that!**

 **TamaraAriel: Isn't it just so easy to picture him as a feathered dragon? Thank you for your support, and I hope you continue to enjoy it!**

 **Adieu~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello lovelies~ So I'm actually on my big bang hiatus right now, the same one I went on when I was first writing this story. But since it's been a while I thought I'd give you another little update! Initially I was going to post 7k since I figured this was a bit short after the last chapter, but there's another scene I want to add in between this and the rest so I'll add that to the next chapter. So long as I can keep up with my big bang writing schedule it shouldn't be too long of a wait! Enjoy~**

* * *

Sabo's sleep was interrupted by an annoying, persistent lyrical noise that had him groaning and wrapping his arms tighter around the one resting beside him. It was bad enough that the screeching song wouldn't stop, but with his hearing it was damn near impossible to _ignore_ , and after a while he found himself opening his eyes to glare at the device making all of that racket so early in the evening. Really, _some_ people needed sleep. Apparently the stupid rectangle thing—a phone, if his memory served him well—didn't understand that.

Clambering over the human towards the nightstand, Sabo reached out a clawed hand—but before he could grab the blasted thing Law stirred beneath him. With a huff, he sat back on his haunches and watched as the youth blearily opened his eyes.

"...Sabo?" Law tried, as though trying to fight through sleep to the memories of yesterday.

He didn't answer, pointing an accusing finger at the device with a scowl. "Little human, make it stop its infernal racket. It won't stop _screeching_."

Law stared for a long while before yawning and stretching, groggily sitting up and following the finger with his eyes. "...The phone? Must be Ace… or Dad…" He reached for it blindly, sliding it off the stand and almost dropping it before pulling it towards himself.

"Ace?" Sabo echoed with a tilt of his head. Ace… Wasn't that a playing card of some sort? Why would a card be trying to contact him? _How_? No, no, it had to be something else… He was far too tired to be thinking about this. It wasn't unusual for him to sleep until well into dusk, as he was nocturnal, so at current he was barely coherent, aside from the few nagging thoughts he had about the many ways he wished to destroy that damned phone thing—even though it'd finally shut up.

"A classmate of mine," Law supplied, moving his thumb across the screen of the phone with a scowl before holding it up to his ear and waiting as it rang. "It seems I missed his call…"

Ah, so this was another little human thing, then, was it? At that Sabo's stomach noised a protesting growl and he pouted. "Can I eat this… 'Ace'?"

"What?" Law snapped, staring at him with white-rimmed, amber eyes. " _No_. Irritating as he may be, I don't want him dead."

"Why? If he's irritating…"

" _No_ ," he repeated firmly, leaving no room for argument as the ringing stopped and the person he was calling picked up. He never waited for a greeting. " _What_?"

" _Oi, lemme in,"_ an unfamiliar voice commanded through the phone, causing Sabo's ears to perk up. Curiously he neared the phone, inching closer to sniff it only to have a hand shoved in his face to push him back.

"Portgas," he greeted with a bit of bite to his tone. Perhaps the little human was also annoyed at being woken so early.

There was a snort on the other end, followed by a bit of quiet shuffling. " _The one and only. Hurry up, would ya? I can only count the cracks in the brickwork so many times."_

Law yawned. "Yeah, yeah, just—hang on." He hung up the phone, allowing it to clatter into the nest as he stretched, letting out a satisfied grunt at the pull of his muscles as he rose to his feet. He seemed pretty calm about it.

Sabo was not. Something new so soon after waking in an unfamiliar place… It made him tense. "I don't like this."

"Calm down," Law instructed, patting the dragon on the head as he stretched, "it's fine. Should have asked why he came, though…"

Sabo didn't relent, holding the pepper from the previous night close to his chest, almost protectively. "Don't like. I'll eat him."

Law snorted, flicking one of the Sabo's horns and earning a halfhearted hiss. "No you won't. As annoying as Portgas can be, he's a decent guy. Fancies himself my friend."

The dragon went undeterred, his tail swishing back and forth as he watched the other move about the room. "Then I'll eat you _and_ him," he stated matter-of-factly. "You can be friends in my stomach."

Law simply rolled his eyes, not gracing his words with a reply as he staggered towards the bedroom door. "I'll try not to be long…" His voice faded and all went still. After a moment he did a double take, wide eyes falling on Sabo, who stared back cluelessly. It was unnerving but fortunately didn't last long as Law stormed out the bedroom door with a string of curses, leaving the dragon sitting alone in the nest and blinking at the retreating form.

For a moment he found himself debating on what to do, fiddling with the cushions and sheets that had been jostled during their more restless hours of sleep. On one hand he was still tired. The human had proved… at least _somewhat_ trustworthy, as he'd been nothing but helpful up until that point. But at the same time, Sabo could scent a new person on the premises—unfamiliar—and that had his feathers fluffing out, claws digging into one of the pillows in distress. How could he _sleep_ like that?

With a tired groan Sabo picked himself up and dragged his aching body out into the hall in some pathetic attempt at stalking his human, turning towards the stairway where he came to a stop. Standing in the front entrance of the building was yet another of Law's kind—slightly tanned with dark hair and freckled skin—and immediately the dragon found a low growl building up in his throat. He stalked closer.

"Portgas," Law greeted dryly. "What do you want?"

The strange human frowned a moment, before his mouth stretched into a wry smile. A gleam of amusement shone through smokey grey eyes. "Is that why you skipped school? Got yourself a girlfriend?"

He stared incredulously. "What?"

Ace's only reaction was to raise his arm and tap the side of his neck, and immediately Law's eyes went wide and he slammed the door on the other human's face, his head snapping around to glower at the dragon. "You left marks on my neck!" Sure enough, between the fingers clasping the Law's neck it wasn't hard to make out the discolouration of a dark bruise, the faint outline of a bite mark at its core. Ah, so he had. Well that wasn't really surprising, was it? And why on Earth was it such a big deal…

Immediately Sabo's face sagged into a pout. "Well obviously. I bit you. Dragon, yeah? I do these things."

Law gaped at him only a moment before the glower returned and he turned it on the door, opening it up again and snapping out, " _What do you want_?"

The stranger was quick to raise placating hands. Despite that, though, there was a look of intrigue on his face that had Sabo holding back a hiss as he peered through one of the windows off to the side. He wasn't so sure he liked that one. "Relax, alright? I came by to give you some notes and homework. We have a bio test on Monday."

Ace shoved something against Law's chest. It looked like a thick bundle of papers… Or, in other words, it wasn't interesting. But he noticed his human's eyes widening, so he thought that maybe it _was_ of interest in some way. Law's expression was amusing, at least. "Yep. We went over _all_ of this today. But I know how you are about the teachers, so I made sure to get all the stuff he skimmed over for you."

Law blinked, lifted his arms to grip the papers before they had a chance to fall, and pressed his lips into a thin line. "...Thanks. It's… appreciated."

Ace grinned, patting Law's shoulder. "No problem. So, about your girlfriend..."

The little human didn't hesitate to slam the door again, this time not bothering to open it back up. But the stranger was still _there_ , and he—and something didn't smell _right_ which had Sabo in a perpetual state of unease. So with a low growl he darted back up the stairs and into one of the spare rooms at the front of the house, opening one of the windows to hiss at the human's retreating form. The stranger noticed him almost immediately, his steps slowing to a halt, grey eyes turning back to the house and widening slightly on the dragon. The surprise didn't last, though, eventually replaced by a grin as he pressed a finger to his lips.

"Shh."

And with that, he turned around and started away again.

Sabo watched him go, instincts relaxing—he _was_ an acquaintance of Law's and he'd been told not to eat him, after all—and soon he found himself leaning heavily on the sill, sniffing the air as his tail ticked back and forth. There was something… not entirely human meshed in with that man's scent. It was… perplexing, and it made the blond curious. "Just what are you, friend of the human?" He wanted to know…

"Sabo!" Law called from the other room, causing his ears to twitch. It pulled him from the tunnel his thoughts had fallen into and he reluctantly pulled out of the room, hopping back into the hall where he watched his human visibly relax at the sight of him. "I thought you'd left…"

The dragon tilted his head. Would it really matter that much if he had? "Why are you so attached to me?" he questioned bluntly, before pointing an accusing finger at the room he'd just come from. "And what the devil was that thing?" He scented human, but… there was something more.

Immediately Law turned away, his gaze falling away to stare at the floor. "I'm not… Thing? What 'thing'?"

"That came here. That thing," he elaborated, as though it were obvious from the start. "What was he? That scent…" He recognised it from somewhere but it was too faint to identify from that far away.

Law narrowed his eyes, mouth pulled into a frown. "...Portgas, you mean? Ace? As I said, he's just a classmate. Why?"

Sabo growled in annoyance. He wasn't getting it. "I asked _what_ he is, not who… And—and he _knew_!" the dragon hissed, his feathers fluffing up as he thought back to that smug grin the bastard wore. Sure he was surprised, but _shocked_? No, that wasn't shock. He could see perfectly well what he was looking at and yet remained unfazed. It didn't bother him. " _Dangerous_ man."

"What… are you talking about?" Law stared on in confusion. "Ace is… He's a human."

The blond snorted in disbelief. Yeah, _sure_ he was. But he wouldn't press. Law wasn't exactly the most… _experienced_ when it came to the dragon's world. He didn't even realise. And that was okay. So instead Sabo changed the subject, pressing a finger to his lips, mimicking the stranger's gesture from earlier. "What does _this_ mean?"

Law only blinked, the confusion on his face becoming ever more prominent as the conversation drew on. "That generally means 'be quiet'. Why?"

Sabo's feathers ruffled and he became increasingly more irate, puffing out his cheeks in displeasure. "How _dare_ he? I'm going to eat that man, Law. I won't even leave carrion for the vultures."

"Sabo, you're not going to eat anybody. We're not having this conversation again."

Oh he would. He _swore_ he would. It would just… take time.

"Sabo," Law started, reclining on the couch—and, damn it, the lizard had stolen _two_ of _three_ of the couch cushions for that 'nest' he'd built upstairs—with a textbook in his hands, flipping through pages and memorising material. "Kindly stop staring like that. You're making me uneasy."

There the blond sat, crouched on a chair he'd pulled against the wall with his hands pressed to the window pane as he watched the front of the mansion eagerly, his tail swishing from side to side. He was certainly eager, licking his lips in anticipation of their meal-to-be. Law knew exactly _why_ he was so eager, too, and he found it more than a little disturbing. Honestly, what was with that creature and his insistence on eating people?

Sabo's head snapped around to stare back at him with curious blue irises but remained fixed there as though guarding the house from some non-existent intruder. His levels of concentration were absurd, like a hunter on the prowl—and that only renewed Law's curiosity about just who was after his feathered friend.

...Friend, huh? Quite a strange word to use when referring to someone he'd known less than twenty-four hours. What had gotten into him?

"But I'm hungry," the other whined, his ears drooping as he frowned back at Law. "I want the food to get here soon!"

"It'll come, just give it time." Sabo's lack of patience was trying, to say the least, and was probably his least favourite thing about his new… _acquaintance_. When put into perspective that was probably a very disturbing thought, considering just how often the dragon mentioned _devouring_ humans like himself. He was… honestly quite lucky that he hadn't been turned against. Perhaps offering his assistance was the only reason, but… "And no, you can't eat the delivery man."

Law ordered pizza, the reason being that, well… there was little else in his fridge. With Sabo having eaten the last of the bacon the night before all that remained was leftover pasta. There were a few problems with that, one being that Sabo explicitly said he required a lot of meat in his diet and the other being that there wasn't enough for the both of them. The sun would be setting soon, so with the long walk back into town out of the question—it couldn't be risked if those hunters, or whatever they were, were still in the area—he thought it best to order something for delivery. They could worry about their next meal when… well, when they got hungry again.

The dragon's face sagged into a pout and his hands finally fell from the glass of the window as he spun around to fully face Law. "But Dinner—"

"Stop calling me that."

"If you're having him bring you food anyway, why can't I eat him?"

Pinching the bridge of his nose, the Law let out a shuddering sigh and turned back to his book, trying to get at least _some_ studying in before the meal arrived and he had to push it aside. "Because he's paid to deliver it, not to get eaten."

"...Extra service?" the blond tried, crossing his arms over his chest with a huff. "He should be proud enough of his job to lay his life on the line for it." The way Sabo just seemed to nod in approval with himself was both amusing and mildly disturbing, and Law wasn't exactly sure how to react.

"...Not when they get paid the amount that they do," he finally answered with a sigh. "Now please, leave me to my reading until the food arrives. And don't try to eat the guy when it does."

"Fine, fine. Gosh, so grumpy. I'd be better off alone at my nest."

Law pressed his lips together, flipping the page as he threw one leg over the other in an attempt to get more comfortable. "...No one's stopping you from leaving."

"You were. Last night."

"That was…" That was a very good point, is what it was. His main reason for being so insistent that Sabo stay the night was because of how injured he was. As cold and distant as Law could be he still held concern for others, and seeing them hurt, well… he didn't like that. It bothered him, regardless of how little he knew them. Part of that could have been why he was so hopeful about getting into medical school someday, the other half being his large curiosity and interest in the human body.

Now that he'd spent some time with Sabo, though, now that they'd spent the last twenty-four hours together… he found it rather nice, being in the company of someone else. With his father always gone and all of those large, empty rooms throughout the mansion, the loneliness was all but consuming. Most days Law never noticed, many he was even _grateful_ for it as he was about as sociable as Sabo was civilised, but as that loneliness crept up and continued on through the days and weeks and months, it started eating away at him, bit by bit, piece by piece. He never even realised.

Not until last night, when he found a strange creature with a broken wing bleeding on the forest floor.

"Okay, then."

Law's head snapped up only to see the dragon heading out of the living room towards the front door, and his eyes widened. He dropped the book onto the sofa and made to get up. "Wait, Sabo—"

When he peeked his head into the entrance hall he saw a blond staring at him unimpressed, tap-tap-tapping his foot against the ground, and cursed. The asshole was messing with him. Of course.

"'No one's stopping you,' he says." Sabo rolled his eyes.

 _Shit._ Immediately he cast his eyes to the floor, unable to form an immediate excuse for his brief moment of anxiety, and he grasped blindly for something to explain it away—because he did not want to admit to the small rise of panic that had just come over him. "You can go back, but… the pizza will be here soon, and I can't eat it by myself. I don't normally have much of an appetite."

After a brief pause Sabo sighed. "Your excuses are getting rather lame, Dinner. Why not be honest?" The fact that the dragon, who thus far had displayed a _clear_ lack of understanding for the modern world, could see through him so easily felt almost insulting.

He crossed his arms over his chest to hide all of that. "I _am_ being honest."

"You're growing attached," Sabo stated bluntly, and it was so accurate that Law had to flinch. "The little human is clinging—scared that I'll go and not come back, and he'll be left alone again."

"I…" The weight from those words had him swallowing a lump in his throat, clenching his fists as he fell silent. Sabo was right. And that _scared_ him, because Trafalgar Law did not grow attached. He didn't, because it wasn't safe.

Sabo simply tapped his shoulder and walked back into the living room with a murmured, "Pizza guy's here."

There was a knock on the door, but Law had lost his appetite.

* * *

 **A lot of people seemed to think that Ace was going to be associated with Sabo. Well, not quite. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to go work on something for the askblog!**

 **MaskedPyro: Teddybear Law sounds adorable XD**

 **darkfalkon: Glad you think so~**

 **iko0756: Thanks!**

 **Kurogane Tsubasa: I have heard so many people say 'I never considered SaboLaw', friend. So, so many. You're very welcome dear!**

 **mishmash: Pffffft I'm happy you're enjoying it! Yes, it really is weird that he's paired with everyone... I think it's because he's a lot of people's favourite character.**

 **DestyPuffari: Here's more~**

 **sarge1130: I''m glad you do! Writing their interactions has always been a lot of fun for me. And of course meat does wonders for dragons XD**

 **Kitsune Foxfire: PFFFT yes omg, axe body spray would definitely keep all the dragons at bay.**

 **Reminiscence Army: It is sort of a mix between Divide and Immortality in a way! Though this Sabo and the Blue Gent are like polar opposites, which makes it even more interesting to write XD**

 **Mah-Blackberreh: *shakes head at***

 **UnicornsThatGamble: Glad that you do my friend!**

 **BeASlumberingDragon: Here's an update hun!**

 **natlaredo: Adfjkg thank you so much ;v; That really means a lot. I'm glad people seem to like him .**

 **mr: Ahhhh I'm so happy to hear that! Law's father will get... explained. Eventually. But some shit has to happen first *cough***

 **Kaki: I'm glad that you do~**

 **silverchiarixx: The nest was so fun to write you have no idea XD**

 **Nala1220: Characters will only be mentioned when they need to be. Timing, ya know? This story is primarily about Law and Sabo so if what you're looking for is more Ace and Luffy then I'm afraid you're not going to get it. They're main characters but not necessarily the focus. I think this chapter answers your question about whether they're brothers. Their ages were decided long before I started posting the story and all I can say is that Luffy isn't even the youngest. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Aki no Kitsune: I think you owe me that $20 my friend XD You'll find out more about his forms next chapter. The healing saliva is... important. I can't really say anything more about that *cough* Actually the bad smell is there for a... very specific reason that I can't disclose *more coughing***

 **StarofJems: Pfft really? What fics? I started the pairing... almost 3 years ago now, I think? The Divide started it all XD Hehe, that's the beauty of AUs! They create situations that can't happen in canon! You're welcome hun.**

 **Dawn of Chaos: Awww thank you, I'm glad you're enjoying it dear!**

 **Adieu~**


	4. Chapter 4

**And so we are back with a holiday update! Didn't have to wait that long this time, did ya? Sadly I don't know how my update schedule will be over the next few months because of the big bang, but I'll do my best to update these stories whenever I can find time. Happy holidays~**

* * *

Having poured all of his concentration, all of his effort into learning the material he needed for the test on Monday, Law found the evening hours fading into night. His head felt sufficiently fried, having combed through not only his textbook and notes but all of the homework he'd been left with as well—and did he ever mention how positively _pointless_ he found homework to be? The only problem now was, well… he'd just opened his eyes to streams of daylight filtering in from the window by his desk.

He had fallen asleep.

With a soft groan he rubbed his head and stood, leaving behind the finished work on his desk to shuffle out of the room. But he stopped when his foot hit something soft and plush, and he stared down with soft eyes at a stray pillow. Law grabbed it and tossed it amongst the rest in the nest his guest had made—and where _was_ his guest?

A pang of dread in his thoughts, he shuffled out of the room and down the stairs. "Sabo?" he called, met with only silence. That didn't bode well, and he quickened his steps. "Sabo," he called again, a bit louder this time, and bit his lip when met with not even the faintest of replies.

He looked over the rest of the mansion—and it took a while, what with so many rooms—but there was no sign of the dragon aside from a few notches in the floor left by his claws digging into the wood and a stray blue feather by the back door.

Law released a tense breath, dragging himself into the kitchen to prepare yet another pot of coffee; he'd had a lot of it during the night. That was… fine. Perfectly fine. Sabo wanted to leave, so he left. He didn't want to stay, and well… Law couldn't fault him for that. His dragon fr— _acquaintance_ made it explicitly clear that he was in a place very unlike the home he was used to, that he wanted to return to his _real_ nest, and that was perfectly understandable.

He could have said 'goodbye', though…

With a sigh Law grabbed his coffee and laptop and slumped down onto the living room sofa, checking his phone as he waited for his computer to boot up. There was a text from Ace, sent the night before. He'd never gotten around to giving it a read...

" _So was that the 'girlfriend'?"_

A red tint bloomed across his face and with a scowl he closed his messenger, cursing his classmate—but wait, Ace had seen Sabo. That wasn't good. That wasn't good _at all_. Some blond boy with horns and wings… This didn't bode well, and he dreaded Monday morning when his classmate would have all the time he wanted to bombard him with questions. He _hoped_ Ace would wave it off, since it was so unbelievable. Maybe he'd think it was just an outfit, or…

On the internet that would probably pass. But in real life? Somehow he doubted it.

A twinge of curiosity had him opening up the gallery on his phone, a few pictures he'd snagged of his guest the first to meet his eye. He'd taken them during breaks throughout the night, the dragon's complaints of boredom pulling him from his studies on _several_ occasions. He'd shown Sabo what the camera on his phone could do, up until Sabo wanted to try taking pictures _himself_ and, well… Law was protective of his things, and Sabo had long claws. Long, sharp claws that could easily ruin his touch screen.

An idea formed in his head then, and when his laptop started up he found himself posting one of his pictures to his blog—or almost did, but hesitated. He was certain people would think it was fake. He was sure they'd dismiss it as that and not give it a second thought, but… what if they didn't?

With a frown he cancelled the post and heaved a sigh, checking his email absently as he wondered what to do for breakfast—until there was a sound from the back of the house, a door followed by scuffling across the floor, and instantly his body melted into the sofa. So Sabo was back, then. The relief he felt at that was… frightening, in a way.

His euphoric state was quick to fade when he heard… chirping. As far as he knew, dragons didn't chirp.

"S'okay," he heard that unique voice murmur, the sound quickly becoming familiar even over just those few short days, "the human'll help. He does these things."

Law frowned at that. What, exactly, was he supposed to be helping? And _who_?

When the dragon stepped in Law's jaw went slack at the sheer amount of _blood_ he saw, coating the blond's arms and legs, his chest and… mouth. The sight made him feel sick, but concern overpowered nausea and he rose, hastily approaching Sabo to look him over. "Are you—hurt?" he asked tentatively, eyeing each of the blond's limbs with a critical eye—but he noticed something, and it had his eyes widened.

"Nu-uh," the dragon shook his head, clutching a pillow close to his chest, blood smeared and staining the white fabric. Apparently he'd taken it with him. "But Lu is. Fix him?"

Law had to pry his eyes away from the very clearly altered body of his acquaintance to stare questioningly at blue irises. "What? Lu? Who…" And it was only then that he became aware of the tiny red bird standing atop the pillow, peering up at him with a tilted head. "...A bird?" A cardinal, to be exact. Just why Sabo had one of those with him, already _named_ , no less…

Sabo gave a curt nod, holding the pillow out for Law to take. "Fix him."

"...Fix him?" he repeated, rather perplexed until he noticed the quivering, limp wing hanging at Lu's side. That explained a few things… But honestly, he wasn't nearly qualified enough to repair whatever damage was done to an actual bird. Even Sabo should have gone to a professional… but what professional was there to treat the injuries of a goddamn dragon? He'd no choice in trying to repair it himself, even with the limited knowledge he possessed and the sheer amount of guesswork that needed to be done.

But no, this was a good chance: if he used this bird as an excuse to go to the vet he could inquire about Sabo's injury as well. He could use this…

Pulling his mouth taut, Law sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "We'll get him looked at," he muttered, dragging himself out into the hall and down the basement stairwell, Sabo following close behind. His father had always been fond of birds and they'd kept a few when he was younger, so with any luck…

Just as he thought, there was an old bird cage shoved onto one of the shelves along the wall. It was aged, but a quick glance-over showed that it was still in good condition, at least. So, an impatient blond still following his every move, he went back upstairs and started filling it with bedding—which in this case was nothing more than rags because he honestly had nothing else—doing his best to ignore the dragon hovering over him and sniffing the contraption with intrigue. When it was ready he met Sabo's eyes. "We'll put him in here and bring him to the vet."

Immediately his command was met with a hiss, Sabo snatching the tiny creature away and holding it protectively to his chest. "No cages."

Law stared. They were really doing this right now? He didn't have the patience to deal with that at the moment… "I know how you feel, but it's either this or his wing doesn't get fixed. It's your choice."

Sabo's eyes widened and he let out a low whine, expressing his confliction as he stared down at his new friend and sighed. After a moment Lu was brought into the cage, settling on one of the low perches and preening his feathers as the wire door closed shut.

"...He can come out later?" the blond tried, his posture oozing guilt and, when he thought about it, Law could honestly say that he understood. Sabo was being chased and he'd already expressed just how much he hated being caged. It was natural.

With a sigh—and knowing he was going to regret this later—the teen gave a nod. "We can let him out when we get back, if we can keep him from trying to fly. But more importantly…" Golden eyes lifted to Sabo, and he couldn't help but stare. "...A human form?"

The dragon blinked, looking down at himself a moment before nodding. "Mm. Thought it'd be less scary that way, 'cause of all the blood."

Why Sabo was suddenly worried about scaring him, he hadn't the faintest, but his attention didn't linger over that, instead fixed the now very… _normal_ looking mythical creature seated across from him. The tail and wings were gone, the horns and feathers as well, giving way to pale skin. Sabo's feathered ears were now smooth, though still a little pointed—nothing noticeable enough to really pay any mind—and in some ways it… didn't look like Sabo. His features were all there, the same eyes and face, the same height and hair, but… it just felt _off_.

He shook his head. There was no point in lingering on it. "Get yourself cleaned up. I'll get you some clothes to wear— _don't_ give me that face, Sabo, or you're not coming."

"Fine," Sabo spat, crossing his arms and childishly turning away, "Dinner."

When would he stop thinking of Law as a portable meal? "We'll go buy some food while we're out. And—" He pursed his lips, giving it a moment of thought before nodding to himself. "If you're good I'll get you a treat."

Blue eyes stared up at him curiously. "What treat?"

"You'll see. Now get ready."

He just hoped the dragon really _did_ behave.

* * *

"And then I hissed and he ran away, yeah? 'Cause I needed to check on the little bird. But he'll be back. His pride was wounded."

Law shook his head in disbelief as they walked alongside one another, Sabo hugging the cage protectively to his chest as they shuffled casually down the path from the plaza. They'd been to the vet and had Luffy's—yes, that was the _full_ name Sabo gave the bird—wing looked at. Broken, as expected. He'd asked a few questions and made mental notes on just how to go about caring for his companion's injury and they moved on to get groceries. Now on the way back the dragon was entertaining him with the story of just how he ended up worrying over some tiny little cardinal. It was amusing, the way he'd bonded with the creature so quickly.

Apparently Luffy had been attacked by a fox while the dragon was out hunting. For some undisclosed reason he'd felt like helping and, well, there they were.

"Sabo," he started with a sigh, "I don't believe the fox sees things the way you do. He was likely looking for a meal—one that you took from him. That's all."

The displeased look he was given had him rolling his eyes and looking instead out to the streets around them. The town Law lived near wasn't an overly large one. In fact it was quite tiny, as just beyond it were acres upon acres of undeveloped land—some of which was owned by his father. That didn't mean there weren't people, though. The strong rush of wind zooming by as cars drove by was proof enough of that. Even without those he could hear the clacking of shoes against cement from behind—two sets of footsteps in tow. They passed many people on their walk, but… none had seemed to notice anything off about Sabo. Sure he _looked_ normal enough, but Law was so _sure_ his behaviour would have given him away. Throughout their entire walk Sabo'd been clingy, practically hanging off of Law while rambling on about this and that, and no one even batted an eye. It was good, of course, _very_ good, but… somewhat frustrating at the same time. Wearing Law's clothes as he was, he blended in absurdly well for a creature so foreign to modern society. Well, excluding the gory talk he'd fall to every once in awhile.

Still, he was behaving, just as he said he would. That meant a treat, didn't it? Law promised.

Handing off the grocery bags, which were getting pretty heavy anyway, he dragged Sabo over to the outer wall of a nearby coffee shop. "Wait here," he commanded, grasping the dragon's shoulders and watching as deep pools of blue stared curiously back at him. "I'm going to step inside a moment."

Those pointed ears twitched, a head tilt following soon after. "...You'll come back? Like from the foods of the groceries?"

Law didn't even bother to roll his eyes at the title bestowed upon the supermarket as he offered the other a curt nod. Really, what a ridiculous creature…

Sabo hummed. "Then… I will wait."

He smiled, "Alright. I'll only be a moment."

Stepping inside Law was met with a rush of cool air, refreshing to the touch as he was freed from the heated noon sun. He relaxed, taking his place at the back of the line, tap-tap-tapping away at the leg of his pants as he gave the menu a thorough look-over. Now, what would Sabo like? Damn it, he should have asked what his tastes were like… But he doubted Sabo drank anything like that before. No, he made it pretty clear with the pizza last night that he'd tried very little human food. So then…

Pressing his lips together as the customer before him placed her order, Law turned to the large windows catching the sun at the front of the shop, his dragon leaning back against them as he sniffed the air. Law's lips curled upward, tension evaporating from his shoulders knowing that Sabo was still listening, just as he had all morning. It brought him comfort, just a smidge, and he stepped up to the cashier.

The brunette before him smiled, leaning forward to press all of her weight on her palms. "What can I get ya?" she asked, amusement in the tone of her voice—and he caught her glancing past to the dragon standing outside for the briefest of moments.

It was enough to bring his nausea bubbling back.

"Coffee, please," he managed to get out after collecting himself, though anxious thoughts were still floating around his head. Did she notice? "Two. Black."

He didn't wait for her to give him the total, already holding out the cash for her to take. They'd met on occasion whenever he dropped by after class and by that point he was just going through the motions, nervously turning to watch his blond through the window—

...His?

Law swallowed, running a stressed hand through his hair as he watched the girl prep his order, stepping aside to grant the next customer access to the cashier who took her place. Sabo was right: he _was_ growing attached. But this was ridiculous. He'd never… _never_ …

The way he was acting _scared_ him.

"Here you go! Enjoy your day," a peppy voice chimed, breaking him away from the downward spiral his thoughts had fallen to.

With a muted nod he accepted the drinks and hurried out of the building with his head hung low, willing back his anxiety. He could worry about all of that… later. At home. When he was alone.

...When the dragon was gone.

"Law!" greeted that familiar, melodic tone. And when he raised his eyes— _thud_. He cursed when a strong body slammed into his, nearly spilling the coffee. "What'd you get me? Is it human food? Human food is tasty. I've decided."

"Damn it, Sabo…" He heaved a sigh and straightened his back, holding out one of the cups and grabbing Luffy's cage to help free one of the dragon's hands. "Here. Coffee. Try it."

Allowing the handles of the bags to slide down his arm Sabo took the cup between both hands and held it close, sniffing experimentally. His face scrunched up in confusion and he eyed it as he followed Law's steps, the student turning to continue on towards the outskirts of town. "Its scent is… odd. What is it?"

"Coffee," he repeated with a sigh as he sipped at his own.

"As you've said," the other muttered with a pout, "but what _is_ it? It doesn't smell as nice as the pizza… I liked that. Can we have more of that?"

"We have some left back home," he stated with a roll of his eyes, "so just give it a try."

It was funny, the look of concentration that crossed Sabo's face as he pressed the rim against his bottom lip, steps slowing as focus increased, and Law found himself subconsciously matching the pace while watching. Finally Sabo took a large gulp, eyes squeezed tightly shut.

"Careful," he cautioned, "it's hot."

A pleasured hum rose up from the dragon's throat and Law half expected his tail to start wagging, momentarily forgetting the form Sabo was using as a guise. Lowering the cup Sabo looked to Law with bright blue eyes, a grin curling his mouth as his steps quickened. "I like this," he stated quietly, taking another sip. "Bitter, but still good. And don't warn a _dragon_ of the heat. I breathe fire; my mouth can handle more than this."

Law gave a soft snort as he turned to face ahead, wordlessly noting that for future reference. "Then just make sure you don't spill it," he muttered, sipping at the beverage in his hand as he once more picked up his pace, Sabo easily keeping up now that his concentration wasn't fully overrun by the foreign substance he'd been given. The walk back to the mansion could be a very long and lonely one. There had been many a day where Law took to looking up, counting the stars faintly shining in the orange and purple skies of dusk to occupy himself. But right in that moment it felt ever so short.

And he still didn't understand _why_.

Their walk had fallen into a comfortable silence—comfortable for _Law_ , who never turned to look at his companion, simply enjoying their two sets of footsteps shuffling along the gravel. It was a while before he noticed the dragon's shivering breath, the way he was absently tracing the rim of his cup with a dull, human nail.

"...No one is waiting for me."

Law pulled himself from his thoughts, turning to look confusedly at Sabo whose stare was currently boring holes into the coffee lid. "Hm?"

Sabo fidgeted as they walked and Law could see the way his nails began to elongate. He let it go unmentioned and instead pondered in silence, assuming the partial transformation to be an act of anxiety—purely subconscious. That just increased his curiosity. "At the nest," Sabo finally elaborated in a hushed murmur, causing Law's steps to slow. "There's no one there."

Pulling his mouth taut, Law fully faced the dragon with a deep-set frown. "You live alone, then?" He had to wonder why _now_ was the time Sabo decided to disclose this and never before but wouldn't question it. Considering how long it took to get the ass to give away his name, Law certainly wasn't complaining.

Sabo gave a muted nod. It was strange, the way he refused to meet Law's eyes when he was always so in Law's face before. But this display seemed almost out of character, and it garnered the human's attention. "My clan abandoned me as a hatchling. They migrated, and I stayed behind in the nest."

That had him coming to a full halt even as Sabo kept walking, simply staring at the blond's back. That was so… _sad._ And yet despite that, despite knowing that he would be going home to an empty nest, Sabo wanted to. He'd made that perfectly clear. Law didn't… _get_ it.

Eventually he shook away his feeling of unease and started forward to catch up, their travels bringing them to the forest surrounding his home, and he was grateful for the cool rush that accompanied the shade of the leaves. But he couldn't focus on the oh-so-wonderful escape from the sun as his dragon had yet again gone quiet, looking very much like he had more to say. But Law didn't know how to broach the topic and begrudgingly remained silent.

The house was in view when his companion next spoke, tail now clearly visible, flicking this way and that. Sabo wrung it in his hands anxiously, the cup now emptied, and kept looking ahead. "I've had encounters with humans. All bad. They can be… scary. Like the hunters from the other night."

"...I see." Law's frown deepened as he came up beside Sabo. Admittedly, he was bothered by what was said, but even more so he was relieved, finally getting Sabo to open up—to fill in the gaps and inadvertently tell Law just what happened that night. Now that he knew his theory was accurate, well… he could guess the rest.

Suddenly the blond rounded on him, staring up with large, round eyes. "But the little human is different. Helped me, and… isn't like the others. I thought all humans were like that…" He chanced the faintest of smiles, licking Law's cheek. "I think I could like humans."

Law blinked as he wiped away the slobber, heaving a sigh as he continued on towards the mansion. "Hush, you. I only did what was natural in that situation."

"...Hey, Law?"

"Hm?"

"I'm glad I didn't eat you."

* * *

 **So we end off with a short little chapter more about Law's confusion than anything. I've got the next chapter about half-written and things'll be picking up, but for now I hope you enjoyed and thanks, as always, for reading.**

 **To my lovelies~**

 **Kitsune Foxfire: PFFFT I think Sabo would feel insulted if they got him a chew toy. Even though he could really use one. Actually… you got Law's feelings spot on. Go Beddy!**

 **StarofJems: Hehe you're welcome~**

 **Guest: Sabo's moodswings are in part due to his upbringing and instincts XD He kinda needed to adapt quickly with the situation so he didn't have time for inbetweens.**

 **Hellfire000: You'll be finding out more about Ace next chapter~**

 **cantorahagedoorn: Here's more!**

 **Natalie Laredo: Ahh thank you hun, and you're welcome! .**

 **Guest (2): Sorry but the chapters for this fic aren't going to be the length of some of my others. I just don't have the time to write that much.**

 **Kurogane Tsubasa: Aww X'D Well you can review whenever a new chapter comes out if you'd like!**

 **Mah-Blackberreh: Yee.**

 **BeASlumberingDragon: Well, now you know what Luffy is *cough***

 **AnyMoreBrightIdeasGenius: Glad you like!**

 **sarge1130: Teddybear Law is best Law. Don't worry, there's plenty of interaction to come!**

 **Guest (3): Yep, there's no hiding anything from Sabo.**

 **Mai Kusakabe: Sabo's appetite is utterly insatiable, I almost feel bad for Law. Well, here's Luffy *cough* And you'll be getting a looooot more info on just what's actually going on next chapter, at least on Law's side of things.**

 **xTheCherryx: Let's just say I have a loooot of plans for Ace and Lu. And other characters. Many other characters… You are very welcome, my dear!**

 **DestyPuffari: Well I'm glad you're enjoying it XD**

 **OuShion: Well yeah, of course I plan on continuing! XD If you're new to my fics then I guess I should mention that I change the characters based on the setting . So in canonverse fics like Until Next Time the characters will be more like themselves, but in fics like this, Divide or Immortality I try to write them more suited to their environment. Sabo has different base instincts because of what he is and he grew up without learning social cues and socially appropriate behaviour (i.e. he never really grew up/matured). He's going to be childish, selfish, snappish, whiny and a bit naive. Law's different, too, though. He's swayed by his emotions and is easily unnerved, and he's quick to embarrass. Ace and Luffy will be OOC to a degree too once we get into their parts of the story :'D**

 **Adieu~**


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